Focus on Pre-Career Employees

The Postal Service has more than 624,000 employees, and nearly 15 percent are pre-career employees. Most new employees who move the mail are hired as pre-career employees. They have lower pay rates generally than career employees and do not receive full federal benefits, although many USPS pre-career jobs serve as an entry point to career positions. Still, the Postal Service has faced difficulties hiring and retaining pre-career employees in recent years. We have issued several reports examining aspects of this problem.

Pre-Career Hiring

Our 2025 white paper explored public and private sector best practices for recruiting in a tight labor market. Tactics included posting employee testimonials and day-in-the-life videos, using one-stop shop hiring events to recruit quickly, and maintaining consistent, transparent communication throughout the hiring journey.

Pre-Career Staffing Levels

The Postal Service has negotiated a cap on the number of pre-career employees with the postal unions. Our analysis of USPS workforce composition determined that fiscal year (FY) 2023 pre-career staffing trailed this cap by 11 to 43 percent depending on the position.

Pre-Career Employee Concerns

The national annual pre-career retention rate dropped to 43.2 percent in FY 2024. Our interviews with pre-career employees found that scheduling and overwork were a top concern. Exit surveys of employees who quit within their first 90 days also highlighted problems with work‑life balance and lack of flexibility in work schedules.

Retention Initiatives

To improve pre-career retention, the Postal Service adopted a national retention initiative that limits employees to 40 hours per week in the first 30 days and provides for regular coaching meetings with supervisors. Some districts were highly engaged and improved retention rates, but not all districts were following the initiative’s best practices. We recommended better training and tracking.